Star-studded $100M wedding attracts Beyonce, Hillary Clinton

In a season of big Indian weddings, the Wednesday marriage of the scions of two billionaire families might be the biggest of them all.

Daughter of Asia's wealthiest man getting married to tune of $100M (Yahoo/Inform)

By Emily Schmall The Associated Press

December 12, 2018 - 2:08 am

In this Sunday, Dec. 9, 2018 handout photo released by Reliance Industries Limited, Hillary Clinton stands and Nita Ambani, right, visit a curated showcase of traditional Indian crafts and art forms on display ahead of the wedding of Isha Ambani, left, in Udaipur, India. Isha Ambani, the daughter of India’s richest mogul, is to wed Anand Piramal, the son of one of India’s biggest industrialists, at the Ambani estate in Mumbai on Wednesday, capping off an extravagant days-long event. (Reliance Industries Limited via AP)

In this Sunday, Dec. 9, 2018 handout photo released by Reliance Industries Limited, Hillary Clinton stands and Nita Ambani, right, visit a curated showcase of traditional Indian crafts and art forms on display ahead of the wedding of Isha Ambani, left, in Udaipur, India. Isha Ambani, the daughter of India’s richest mogul, is to wed Anand Piramal, the son of one of India’s biggest industrialists, at the Ambani estate in Mumbai on Wednesday, capping off an extravagant days-long event. (Reliance Industries Limited via AP)

FILE - In this Friday, Nov. 30, 2018 file photo, Chairman of Reliance Industries Mukesh Ambani, left, and his daughter Isha Ambani, arrive to attend the wedding of Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas in Jodhpur, India. Isha, the daughter of India’s richest mogul, is to wed Anand Piramal, the son of one of India’s biggest industrialists, at the Ambani estate in Mumbai on Wednesday, Dec. 12, capping off an extravagant days-long event. (AP Photo/Sunil Verma, File)

FILE- In this Sunday, Dec. 9, 2018 file photo, singer Beyonce arrives to perform at the wedding of Isha Ambani, the daughter of India's richest mogul, and Anand Piramal, the son of one of India's biggest industrialists, at the airport in Udaipur, India. Beyonce performed at a pre-wedding event Sunday at a 16th-century palace in the Indian city of Udaipur. Guests included Hillary Clinton and a host of Bollywood A-listers. (AP Photo/Rohit Kothari, File)

A street is lit-up outside the house of Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani ahead of the wedding of his daughter Isha in Mumbai, India, Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2018. Isha Ambani, the daughter of India’s richest mogul, is to wed Anand Piramal, the son of one of India’s biggest industrialists, at the Ambani estate in Mumbai on Wednesday, capping off an extravagant days-long event. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)

NEW DELHI — In a season of big Indian weddings, the Wednesday marriage of the scions of two billionaire families might be the biggest of them all.

The bride, Isha Ambani, is the Ivy League-educated daughter of industrialist Mukesh Ambani, thought to be India’s richest man. Forbes estimates his net worth at over $43 billion.

The groom, Anand Piramal, is the relative pauper. His father, industrialist Ajay Piramal, is thought to be worth $10 billion.

The wedding is being held in Mumbai on Wednesday but festivities began weeks ago, starting in September with an engagement party at a lakeside Italian palace. Over the weekend, thousands attended pre-wedding parties at a 16th century palace in the Indian desert city of Udaipur, where videos shot by partiers showed Hillary Clinton dancing with Shah Rukh Khan, one of India’s biggest movie stars, as former Secretary of State John Kerry danced just a few feet away.

A highlight was a performance by Beyonce, who sang “Crazy In Love,” among other hits, with a band backing her up and a series of costume changes that included at least one India-inspired outfit.

“Beyonce Lights Up Udaipur,” the Times of India shouted in a Tuesday headline.

Indian weddings are famously elaborate, driving many families into debt with expectations that they invite hundreds or thousands of people, and arranging professional song-and-dance shows.

Among India’s rich, weddings are displays of almost unimaginable wealth, with guests flown in on chartered jets from around the world and celebrities paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for brief appearances. In 2004, a daughter of Indian steel baron Lakshmi Mittal held her engagement party at Versailles.

The Indian media noted that the actual Ambani wedding, in Mumbai, was expected to be a relatively small affair, with just 600 or so people in attendance. More parties will follow the marriage ceremony.

Antilla, the Ambanis’ 27-story Mumbai home, has been strung with lights for the wedding, looking like a small skyscraper at night. The family is said to have reserved hundreds of hotel rooms for their guests.

Dozens of photographers were gathered outside the home’s entrance Wednesday afternoon, waiting for guests and the groom who, in traditional Indian fashion, was expected to arrive on a horse.

The Ambani fortune stretches across a range of industries, from petroleum to chemicals to mobile phones. They control the conglomerate Reliance Industries. The Piramal family businesses include pharmaceuticals and real estate.

The competitiveness of India’s wintertime wedding season is growing more extreme, according to Archana Dalmia, a social activist in New Delhi.

“A farmer might commit suicide because he can’t save enough money to get his daughter married,” she said.

The extravagant wedding of Indian actress Priyanka Chopra and American singer Nick Jonas earlier this month — attended by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi — was straight out of a Bollywood film.

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